Got Questions? Ask Them Now FREE on MakeUseOf Answers!

 

Original article: Hi-Tech Toilet

Similar in Geeky Fun

• Old People and Technology
• First Portable Digital Camera (1975)
• Amish Texting & Driving
• A House Of Ultimate Technology Products
• How Grandma Sees The Remote

Comments(author unknown)15776851246514208663134135530968302678340889305600066220266500230411361231332476004187277540786457690266267787516770978707148288498072586896079080638925305176761193607092758261495202236648970833004507131950800001004542280537193922703755489405013847468273194527071970179584138667900924585289716446839508206529301595385751179784288629739503761316556783136708280614858843266102361587063771971642580445271343878320044040777112828017812172957298026199729740438651321056169759928285457917089825778557637531100086530171181253010249336186445989772610506160750992527978037462694673319077610789173510526928622616147642845517120707010587260961886517511775831910009565519402884835961078815542058697771859444489781461891972962349202414780158955897127136118119078784227806660274315646362410008209293844089467099414101618755408418814240910314718527253655902954242665017563987177928439725506347221045288375242184828601025362337053668646064486758145278922510187857016626641922616034783158670814920044634261333098596900760794049834914247408965613119060697129121505405833889704950697042325618184965202166779410634937898027535851684504097761657965221081921884807641046004610066331048535362824666794730600198576953292989607963880079078746570023643599290333111780524004434004773080311426424914653616589183677437615609865070913424266537979881714034950334088533446021313210864956544501717055343105409143410751329471602110124068799949978473469360179959543504574526205022176521855046610017174015124635166020651577648448110895016537250040934030618085231938616490354201241486380908143903609800014945782840586173583546035116165891149376652991989523702895289832648186966028984845955480291640901888977611845152116962824904601760347129456793133392316450732239784292503197012078296549135493968066122743323554527231688066656814475980307230464397357280077036763990701555375021714805342167313747205268782570433438737052914553645357699420927218817922267994608915834275668816438118771297835304190511582700940130876380411510513736283372379

Last week we reported that the Federal Communications Commission had pushed back its next public meeting from Sept. 16 to Sept. 23, citing "scheduling issues."

A group of Representatives from the U.S. Congress have sent the FCC a letter to keep the pressure on for net neutrality. Representatives Ed Markey (D-MA), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Jay Inslee (D-WA), all of whom are members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, sent FCC chair Julius Genachowski the letter.

Sponsor

Net neutrality talks brokered by the FCC broke down last week. The talks included Google, Comcast, Verizon and other ISPs and wireless companies. They broke down after Verizon and Google proposed their own agreement, which some believe to be a step back, due to very vague language and possible loopholes.

Calling the Internet "the most successful communications and commercial medium in history, the letter calls for a "commonsense non-discrimination requirement without loopholes."

The representatives warn that paid prioritization would damage the Internet and caution against the temptation of using the Google-Verizon agreement as a starting point.

"The recent proposal by Google and Verizon of an industry-centered net neutrality policy framework reinforces the need for resolution of the current open proceedings at the Commission to ensure the maintenance of an open Internet. Rather than expansion upon a proposal by two large communications companies with a vested financial interest in the outcome, formal FCC action is needed. The public interest is served by a free and open Internet that continues to be an indispensable platform for innovation, investment, entrepreneurship, and free speech."

The letter is available in full on Rep. Inslee's site.

Discuss

Curt Hopkins

Wave goodbye (sorry, we couldn't resist) to Google's "community collaboration" tool. In a post on Google's official blog, Senior VP of Operations Urs Hölzle has announced there are "[no] plans to continue developing Wave as standalone product." Blame it on a lower-than-desired user adoption rate, he says, all the while praising the learning experience and innovative tools it fostered. The site will reportedly be maintained "at least through the end of the year," with no promises beyond that, and tools will be eventually released "so that users can easily 'liberate' their content from Wave." We said early on that many of Wave's best ideas seemed better fit integrated into existing Google products like Docs and Gmail, and the company seems to agree: it plans to "extend the technology for use in other Google projects." We look forward to it, but in the meantime, a moment of silence for Google Maps co-founders Lars and Jens Rasmussen's now-fallen experiment.

Google Wave flatlines: no plans to further develop standalone product, future is in other Google services originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Aug 2010 17:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Google  | Email this | CommentsRoss Miller03640931433618538228068969600337415885550973355568374054369308788158783788226809061290379164742454311690416493358313065312575921012878112859153404454364664737450371450343152817686506807069427704051278139182506870540649260812424134982849403403914724169706964346129061261990359277030656300300715569386813026076597564466528168679255798584362311045288375242184828606925351185350905271065753926599977123150613329986587258040208200876874060761027031785600370965373770313211099583382672202026075793440048190025159414795052738450264394551843777889910735667755125634205016499727350088057961138749314268388679508891611299381717895168689953201054309991162431783765757027311611005447617260486027191936231471196960884187812926128625004549719163774754723095560990844213649641228353566785639992606935376949090853536181800042283663206730484133547632613385712705099081015215221139499451151508483720707169646564865902012239866026655063875077906074971867392221167745839677568733405703780034632396026067389979181010118771750650994429781224009654366266633561833146275675796428022240036364747947051943407112134712892908811182580710090558526240750577094172872941812128080852281383372160733228278537351641078143656900295967401259818698699721128021943965447017410650199385749967757618900663100725137653101051496717409722065000861412032912420612601629519499787580560172141171923458173571592916026502976994807749533315122072791090247366173256145470251029850182069543104739565111213526073056812347353235841560231204291182305909809390331038663386488135564848986981601400256084198853223799018228227920768044750147549047772832369521489874149125891150717538285665340882894133048090475843976040926966006780567077502893656500948802331145758269454051671820923802563002446111103498484511428850716043633450694760046780462344666082076178915023137548130462641015032837577026547300841852636744996196115636847597290854764102194566656171165961160478391582627293713767770380011269187012672539305363145621831062716994432141711632751218400463468

Mashable’s Spark of Genius series highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, see details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.

Name: Key Ring

Quick Pitch: Never carry plastic loyalty cards again. Download “Key Ring Reward Cards” for free on your iPhone or Android device.

Genius Idea: Key Ring, a mobile loyalty card application for iPhone and Andriod made by Mobestream Media, serves the same purpose as other apps such as CardStar — mitigating loyalty card buildup.

Consumers tend to carry around cards for retailers or venues they frequent on a regular basis, including gyms, boutiques, drug stores and grocery stores. The Key Ring Rewards Card application makes a digital copy of those cards so that you can leave the physical cards at home.

You can download the free app and use it to scan the barcodes on your loyalty and club cards. To get started, select “Add Card” and click yes or no to specify whether or not the card in question has a barcode. If it does, the app will then let you scan the barcode, identify the retailer and create a digital copy. If the card doesn’t have a barcode, you can manually input the membership ID in lieu of the barcode scan.

After inputting all your cards, you’re left with a single mobile phone repository of all your various cards. When visiting any of the retailers you’ve created mobile loyalty cards for, you can simply have them scan the barcode from your phone to retrieve your account information.

The Key Ring offering is simple and painless. The service even includes an online account manager and card backup system. Eventually users will be able to password-protect individual cards. Mobestream Media is also planning to partner with businesses and retailers to offer King Ring-specific loyalty programs for real-time coupons or discounts.

Practically speaking, Key Ring is a simple way to get rid of the paper and plastic cards weighing down your wallet.

Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

Reviews: Android, CardStar, iPhone

More About: cardstar, key ring, loyalty program, mobile loyalty card

For more Tech coverage:

• Follow Mashable Tech on Twitter
• Become a Fan on Facebook
• Subscribe to the Tech channel
• Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

  

Sometimes, a picture can be powerful enough to be inspirational material all by itself. To provide you with some inspiration for the upcoming week, this sunday we feature some truly beautiful and impressive images from talented artists and photographers worldwide.

Whether in black and white or in colors, they are all related by a strong sense of composition and an emphasis on lightening and colors work. All images are linked to their sources, which you are encouraged to visit. Other work of the photographers we have featured here is certainly worth discovering as well. Please notice that some images are available as prints as well.

[Offtopic: by the way, did you know that there is a Smashing eBook Series? Book #1 is Professional Web Design, 242 pages for just $9,90.]

Beautiful Photography

Dreaming
Amazing sleeping beauty, where the beauty is actually also the beast, by Peter ツ. Prints are available as well.

Blue Sky

Far And Away

Inside Capitol Hill

The Endpoint
By Jeannette Oerlemans.

Falling Up

Song of Tide
By Wira Nurmansyah from Indonesia.

Blue
By Earl A. Jones.

Bunny Bokeh
Happy bunny bokeh wednesday, by Little Miss Patricia.

The Cat

Abstract
By tanakawho.

Ink Sea
By Hermin Abramovitch.

Fan’s Eye
A macro shot by LauHi.

falltuer

Painter
By Konrad Bąk.

Ant, The Driver
By Raphael Guarino.

A purple leaf
By National Geographic.

Flower Petal
By Alistair Campbell.

Keeper
By Wysseri.

Who Feels Love
By Ciuky.

In The Mood 4 Love
By Antonio Navarro Wijkmark.

Tunnel
By Kleemass.

Eyjafjallajökull
By Skarphéðinn Þráinsson.

Susanna Majuri
A disturbing yet insteresting serie of images by Susanna Majuri.

San Torini

Abandoned
By tEdGuY49.

blue canary
By Ursula I Abresch.

Bearded Dragon
A macro shot by LauHi.

Ant (by Unknown)
Please let us know who is the author of this image in the comments.

Light Paintings by Twin Cities Brightest

Last Click

The Plugs
Well, that’s not a beautiful photo per se, but we are confident that this image will spark your imagination for a more productive workflow — at least when it comes to handling cabels and plugs!

Would you like to see more similar inspirational posts?

Would you like to see more similar (inspirational) posts on Smashing Magazine?Market Research

© Smashing Editorial for Smashing Magazine, 2010. | Permalink | Post a comment | Add to del.icio.us | Digg this | Stumble on StumbleUpon! | Tweet it! | Submit to Reddit | Forum Smashing Magazine
Post tags: photography, photos

  

Sometimes, a picture can be powerful enough to be inspirational material all by itself. To provide you with some inspiration for the upcoming week, this sunday we feature some truly beautiful and impressive images from talented artists and photographers worldwide.

Whether in black and white or in colors, they are all related by a strong sense of composition and an emphasis on lightening and colors work. All images are linked to their sources, which you are encouraged to visit. Other work of the photographers we have featured here is certainly worth discovering as well. Please notice that some images are available as prints as well.

[Offtopic: by the way, did you know that Smashing Magazine has one of the most influential and popular Twitter accounts? Join our discussions and get updates about useful tools and resources — follow us on Twitter!]

Beautiful Photography

Dreaming
Amazing sleeping beauty, where the beauty is actually also the beast, by Peter ツ. Prints are available as well.

Blue Sky

Far And Away

Inside Capitol Hill

The Endpoint
By Jeannette Oerlemans.

Falling Up

Song of Tide
By Wira Nurmansyah from Indonesia.

Blue
By Earl A. Jones.

Bunny Bokeh
Happy bunny bokeh wednesday, by Little Miss Patricia.

The Cat

Abstract
By tanakawho.

Ink Sea
By Hermin Abramovitch.

Fan’s Eye
A macro shot by LauHi.

falltuer

Painter
By Konrad Bąk.

Ant, The Driver
By Raphael Guarino.

A purple leaf
By National Geographic.

Flower Petal
By Alistair Campbell.

Keeper
By Wysseri.

Who Feels Love
By Ciuky.

In The Mood 4 Love
By Antonio Navarro Wijkmark.

Tunnel
By Kleemass.

Eyjafjallajökull
By Skarphéðinn Þráinsson.

Susanna Majuri
A disturbing yet insteresting serie of images by Susanna Majuri.

San Torini

Abandoned
By tEdGuY49.

blue canary
By Ursula I Abresch.

Bearded Dragon
A macro shot by LauHi.

Ant (by Unknown)
Please let us know who is the author of this image in the comments.

Light Paintings by Twin Cities Brightest

Last Click

The Plugs
Well, that’s not a beautiful photo per se, but we are confident that this image will spark your imagination for a more productive workflow — at least when it comes to handling cabels and plugs!

Would you like to see more similar inspirational posts?

Would you like to see more similar (inspirational) posts on Smashing Magazine?Market Research

© Smashing Editorial for Smashing Magazine, 2010. | Permalink | Post a comment | Add to del.icio.us | Digg this | Stumble on StumbleUpon! | Tweet it! | Submit to Reddit | Forum Smashing Magazine
Post tags: photography, photos

There's an amusing text-to-speech animated video making the rounds (I've been sent it half a dozen times already) mocking iPhone-obsessed buyers going into stores and not caring that phones like the HTC Evo might have better specs, because they just "want an iPhone." It's amusing (though, probably not safe for work from an audio standpoint -- so wear headphones, or work with cool people): Well over a million people have seen it. It's definitely gone viral. But that, of course, doesn't make it a story worth mentioning here.

What does is Best Buy's incredible stupidity about the video. Wait, you might ask, what does the video have to do with Best Buy? In the video the store is called "Phone Mart," and there's no mention of Best Buy at all. There's absolutely nothing about the video that would have you thinking about Best Buy. Until now.

Andrew F points us to the news that the creator of the video actually works at Best Buy -- even though pretty much everyone who watched the video had no idea. And now, Best Buy upper management was so afraid that Apple/AT&T might get upset at the idea that Best Buy was mocking the iPhone that it suspended the guy who made it and are in the process of firing him. Yes, despite the fact that no one was associating this video with Best Buy, Best Buy decided to do the one and only thing that would suddenly associate this video with Best Buy in a way that is not, at all, flattering to Best Buy. If it was afraid of how this video would look for Best Buy, it probably should have considered how much worse firing the guy who made it looks.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story


Mike Masnick140887905062639043010921213285531538542302493361864459897726112137277078886482921192644654223956036104016474186488620897177573192043254710191145212411900954010317989685531944757528075923763231351156791172715828948466217817485565091857948729094404024810008697821305059311685304810816856063829114255414128827882370147827241130827770553613319904587748544218900048015032837577026547301792905686688826609113143767479449534235119343829770200169240411696802534044388315503241385824533459124627616707032927891444690235190138181207401941953240603257108482613080823785321626309529855773652205121651468890047308108721673468739663440236252405889902845009559953256839315456

A classic collection of reasons, rationalizations, and justifications why you're better off without Apple's iPhone 4. (author unknown)

So it’s an hour before the curtain rises (I mean, if there was a curtain) and the power goes out at the Jimmy Kimmel Live taping and broadcast center. The show is still lit and the studio audience is good to go… but they can’t tape it.

Pop quiz, hot shot: how do you record a whole show with no equipment? Answer: pull out your MacBook.

Yes indeed, the sprightly mind of Mr. Kimmel went straight to the built-in webcam on his laptop, which he promptly had brought out to his desk. And then he recorded the whole thing. At 640×480, on his laptop.

All I have to say is it’s a good thing the lighting was still working, because those iSights aren’t so good in the dark. It’s on tonight! Go watch it!

[via Gizmodo]

Apple needs to go back to the drawing board when it comes to implementing multitasking on the iPhone.



iPhone - Apple - Smartphone - Handhelds - IPhone OS(author unknown)09879977286868249236031267105112428376320862442909291922376608153230191716130266120468848113732703811833707170973597034712990946534841410421063413877129321792341423398735661203096511441163357775894251119906950022037179110843594831269729493601650761658069285380143053371741067139840244447540540730739115387392647568994731130307349315917355430055828857697001820402823936728589691133089306217606367881331660123185055754166805109728855050309257179737789521010823080557798205408116273707568529539922289161151764926527807255541082647290592597515317749547229357927365146299714931694069491785700977006764089111064295896977136453025595870440191042111217184184994959208510873878696185775523024995492014122650181422091204555420621216730012077181798538066722632148904810710465983417080308204508965613119060697129113850948423762896391275757174665268504213029419545739634388123670576585507928420454090900191520032707803955114778986351036203982175258886731434339536801874273216783824462387265337078175321379828905860111618930136881112601799595435045745262046502294852241016320752391929341380402600778901325709383774171974121263446670960845135214054301824417146945050555949655074361423816171059190672139946407527035814295600616736276413008247551039023785590702270853217301183418429696956041412574025183533715189690210006283748615534814804248595148827141826098610103789995369850840974340843000783510011915559207646891022333032761417105651576234486737365140406249870058684372454163886748261198539340891583427566881643810087988533359187826155328836710004336810875627875347763949902631850854952222221127050990810152152210284846425686745156901194856576819327635031430522629392888980599428586991970179804002283723597444189021776578595143969470938305721407080036418064792328047929221001190725144947065730505733977660737368604440550031984313322078946705309818012180438821759552389600217680356761816853670180587590876625812290036795187317545655800508554775247567927077466217285404157331598392368139204340507568973981045689994

Facebook users beware: A new rogue Facebook app is spamming newsfeeds and tricking users into handing over profile access. According to the security firm Sophos, more than 190,000 people have already clicked on a link sent by this rogue app that promises to show “shocking video”" of a teacher physically assaulting a young man.

The bit.ly link redirects users to a Facebook Page that then prompts users to allow an application called “Teacher nearly kills 13 year old boy. SHOCKING!” access their profile information and permission to post on their wall.

As of right now, it doesn’t appear that the application does anything more than post the spam link to the newsfeed in hopes of tricking more users; however, the next message the app posts to your wall could be far more dangerous.

We echo Sophos’s thoughts in hoping that Facebook shuts down this app immediately and works on tightening some of the security policies that let this sort of thing through to begin with.

If you have fallen for this attack, remove the app from your profile and then check your privacy settings to make sure nothing has changed on that front. Also delete any posts the app has made on your wall.

[via Sophos]

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Antagain

For more technology coverage, follow Mashable Tech on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook

Reviews: Facebook, Twitter, iStockphoto

Tags: facebook, facebook app virus, facebook apps, security